I'll Win, for You
by iatethedarknessflame
Summary: Since Crystal fell into Zoro's life, he has taken her in as an apprentice and has trained from nothing to a formidable student of the sword. He gave her a second chance at life and she has the first opportunity to prove herself. Does she have what it takes to face her first opponent?
1. Chapter 1

"Zoro, can you get that!" I yelled, hoping he was paying attention.

It had happened before, but I didn't feel like interrupting my shower to answer the knock at the door in my towel. Last time I answered to a pervy old man asking donations for the local newspaper and I got the creepiest vibe from him.

As I dried off, I heard Zoro talking with a female at the front door. I threw on some clothes and brushed out my blue hair to properly great our guest, assuming Zoro would just let them stand in the doorway all night long. I checked myself over in the mirror real quick making sure my hair was alright. But seeing as it was so short, there wasn't much I had to do to in anyways. My eyes lingered over the blue scar across my face for just a moment before I went out.

"I think you left this at the dojo," the visitor said with a nervous giggle. "I just came by to drop it off for you."

"Oh thanks," Zoro grumbled in reply. "Hey Crystal, take care of this."

I narrowly dodged the stinking cloth he tossed at me when I entered the room.

"Oh hell naw. I'm not touching that nasty thing."

"Hey, you're that new girl who always does chores around the village. I've seen you before," the girl stated flatly, seizing me up with a hand on her hip.

"Yeah, I'm Crystal," I responded, unsure if she was looking to make conversation or just make statements about me.

"I didn't realize you were living with Zoro. You must be his maid or something." She looked at him and her attitude suddenly shifted from malignant to pretentious. "We train at the same dojo."

"Good for you," I answered flatly. "Here take this back."

I used the end of a broom to hand her the sweaty bandana.

"She said she was returning it to me," Zoro interrupted.

"It's Cassandra (in case it slipped your mind)," she said with an excessive amount of cheer. Evidently, her favorite conversation topic was herself.

"Zoro, one," I pointed at his arm, "two," I pointed at the bandana pulling my hair back. "We're all accounted for."

Cassandra's blonde curls seemed to recoil when I approached her with the unclaimed cloth. Upon realizing that the sweat didn't belong to Zoro, she wanted nothing to do with it. With a quick flick, I flung it at her and she responded with a light shriek.

"Why don't you try Toyami up the road. He might have left it," Zoro dismissed.

Looking flustered, Cassandra gingerly picked up the bandana and muttered "right". As she stood back up, I was staring down at her and we made eye contact. The instant electrifying tension sparked her back to hostility.

"You know we've seen you toying around with the practice targets in the field. We laugh at you, waving your stick around out there like you have a clue. But you're just a wannabe."

I seized her up while she hissed meaningless insults. She potentially trained under the same regimen as Zoro in the dojo but judging by her manicured nails, her priorities probably fell elsewhere.

"Sounds like you've got yourself a reputation," Zoro smirked at me, caring as little about the insults as I did. "And not a very nice one. What do you say we change that."

Yeah, I caught his drift.

"Cassandra, I challenge you to a duel. Tomorrow at noon at the dojo."

"Psh whatever." And she was gone.

I stared after her into the darkness wondering what I had just done.

"You're going to kick her ass."

I nodded. Even if I didn't feel confident, I trusted Zoro's judgement and his training. I knew he wouldn't throw me into a match at the dojo if he didn't think I had a chance.

Besides, this meant a lot to him too.


	2. Chapter 2

"You're up early," Zoro yawned as he sat down at the table.

"Yeah, I couldn't sleep," I admitted while fidgeting with my spoon.

That morning, I woke up with the sun, took a walk, made breakfast, tried to eat, took another walk, and tried to eat again.

"Nervous?" he asked, taking the spoon out of my hand and putting it down on the table.

"Uh huh. I couldn't eat either," I sighed.

"Well do you think you're going to win?" he asked, digging into the porridge I made.

"I think I could win, but I also think I could lose." I didn't really have a good measure of my opponents skill or even mine for that matter.

"That's all you need," he stated. "As long as you believe you could win, all you have to do is fight."

"That's easy enough for you to say," I grumbled over a mouthful of food. It stuck like a lump in my throat on the way down to my nervous stomach. "You have the strength to back up your confidence and run headfirst into a match. I've never done this before, you know." I sat there stirring around my food, feeling kind of sick.

"If you're just going to play with your food then let's go for a walk."

The sun was relentlessly blazing down on us as we walked through the open fields to get to the forest. Without the relief of clouds, the earth steadily heated up and it would be scorching by midday. Drops of sweat ran down our faces from the heat alone.

"If you lose this match, will you give up?" Zoro asked once we reached the shade of the trees.

"Of course not. The outcome of a match doesn't change the fact that I want to get stronger." I realized that I was starting to sound like Zoro.

"Good. You'll be fine then."

"But it would be really disappointing. Not to mention embarrassing."

I could just imagine that I would have to hide my face anytime Cassandra or her little squad walked through town after the way I had so eagerly challenged her yesterday. And the pitiful looks I'd get from everyone who always doubted me when I told them that I don't train in the dojo. I tell them that their style doesn't suit me and they turn and whisper about how I'm too petit to go up against real opponents. I know because I can hear them even though they think they're out of my range.

"You know, I lost my first match," Zoro admitted with a laugh. His voice pulled me out of imagining my potentially dark future. "I didn't have a minute of training but I challenged the dojo anyways. Got my ass handed to me obviously but I was fine."

"Um how old were you when this happened?"

"3."

"Wow," I breathed, imagining a toddler taking on a dojo. But it actually wasn't surprising considering who it was. Zoro lived and breathed the way of the sword and I had always just seen him as taking out opponents one after another from the day he was born.

"It made me angry and I went back every day to fight. It eventually turned into training as they would give me pointers," he reminisced. "And I've lost many times since then..."

"2000, at least," I recalled the tale about his friend Kuina.

"Thanks for the estimate," he said through gritted teeth. "But the point is, I never broke. And I expect the same will be true for you."

"Wait, you're expecting I will lose?" I shrieked and stopped in my tracks. Zoro's confidence in me was literally all I had.

"I mean that I don't expect your fighting spirit to die no matter what happens today," he replied, pushing me along. "If you really want to know, I expect you to win."

Well at least one of us thought so. But I felt more at ease.

"Wanna know why?" he asked with a mischievous grin.

I knew I didn't have a choice. His movements suddenly became more stealth and he advanced on light feet with his hand grasping the hilt of his sword. Ahead of us was a rodent that had given away it's position with a rustling in the undergrowth. I closed my eyes to try to identify the creature. Heavier treading and length in its strides told me it was a rabbit.

As I wondered what kind of metaphorical lesson this rabbit would have, I heard Zoro make a quick movement. I expected to feel the small vacuum of air his blade would create from a quick cut. But the current immediately beside me was hardly disturbed. Instead, I felt something pressing down hard and fast on me from above.

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A/N: Hello! I will try to update this story every few days. It's a short one with 7 or 8 parts so hopefully it will be completed soon! Hope you enjoy it (:


	3. Chapter 3

Instinctively, I drew my wide blade from the sheath on my back to defend myself. I threw it down hard over my head. The black metal made contact with wood and I pushed through it until two halfs of the trunk had fallen to either side of me.

They landed with a deafening thud but behind the noise, I felt a great disturbance from over the tree I raised my blade just in time to catch Zoro's as it came down hard on me. The pressure was too great for me move so I just held on hoping for a stalemate. From the angle of his blade, I figured he has two hands on it meaning I wouldn't have to worry about fending off a simultaneous attack from a two sword style assault.

He backed off and I opened my eyes when I heard the click of his blade back in the sheath. That grin hadn't left his face the whole time.

"Because do you think your opponent is stronger than that tree?"

I took a good look at the trunk I had just cut down. It was just about wide enough for me to wrap my arms around and be able to touch my fingers on the other side. Cassandra wasn't nearly that thick so by that logic, I had just proved that I would be victorious.

"Just relax," Zoro smiled, patting me on the shoulder. "Your worst enemy is yourself."

"Yeah, thanks," I grinned, starting to trust myself almost as much as I trusted Zoro.

Without the nerves blocking my hunger, my stomach groaned and requested we go back home.

"Let's go back and get ready," the swordsman laughed. "No point fighting on an empty stomach is you can't help it."

We reached the edge of the forest and Zoro paused. As he spoke, his voice was more gentle than I was used to.

"Win this one for me, alright?"

"Of course. And for her."

He wasn't expecting me to bring his childhood friend into this. But I knew he wanted to prove to the dojo that a swords woman could flourish just as much as a swordsman under the right mindset.

"I visited her grave this morning," I added quietly, wondering if he would mind that I was intruding on a part of his past.

"Well there's no way you can lose," he grinned and started heading home.


	4. Chapter 4

I learned that if you try hard enough, you could turn anything into a party.

We went to the dojo early, but apparently not earlier than half the village who had set up plenty of festivities around the area. Blankets were spread out under umbrellas as families sat in the grass enjoying snacks they purchased from vendors while children played mini games in tents nearby. A portable takoyaki stand caught the attention of my nose as the scent of the doughy balls filled the air. Before I had realized it, Zoro had gone and come back with some sort of alcoholic beverage.

"Do these people really not have anything better to do," he grumbled, taking a sip of his drink.

"Yeah they must get pretty bored if this was all organized overnight," I agreed.

I had to shake about 20 people's hands as they wished me luck while we went to find Zoro's sensei and the master of the dojo.

"I am Crystal," I bowed when we finally caught up to him. "Thank you for allowing us to use this space."

"Ah Crystal. Welcome, I have been looking forward to the day you'd come here. I am Koshiro Sensei. I've heard a lot about you."

"He asks about you everyday," Zoro added from behind his glass.

"Well you know Zoro, he hardly volunteers any information," Koshiro Sensei teased. "Oh look, here comes Cassandra," he said with noticeably less enthusiasm.

She bowed to the dojo's master and turned to look at me with hostile green eyes. "I'm surprised you showed up," was all she said.

Then she turned to Zoro and her expression lit up. "Are you excited for the big event? Denise did a great job of getting the whole village riled up."

"Oh really," he replied and emptied his glass.

"Yeah she sent out invites to everyone last night so they'd be sure to see them in the morning." Undeterred by Zoro's lack of enthusiasm and generally disinterested personaility, she continued to chatter away about how so-and-so sent her flowers and her father just bought her a new sword.

She obviously didn't have anything to say to me and everything I need to say would be delivered through the bokken in the fighting ring. Instead I just stared at her as she babbled, trying to figure out her motive.

"So after I win, how about we go out to the bar to celebrate," she said with a check-mate sort of grin on her face.

Oh. So she was vying for his attention. I could totally understand that since he was always so distant and rarely ever opened up. And I suppose I did the same, when it came to training. His praise was so rare and rewarding that hoping for his recognition got me through some if the toughest challenges.

But she was only after the thrill of the hunt and I would never let her win.

"Hey Zoro, why don't I get you another drink," I offered with a bit of extra sweetness to my voice. Zoro would say to let it all out on the field but that's not the game girls played.

"Sure," he grinned, handing me his empty cup. His smile meant one point for me.

I took a few steps before looking back over my shoulder. I made sure to catch a look at Cassandra's frustrated expression. "Actually, let's go together because I'm not sure exactly what you want."

"Okay sure," he said, looking very relieved to get out of there. His agreement: another point for me.

He got his drink and I got a water and we went to sit in a quieter area beneath a shady tree.

"You remember how this works?" he asked.

"Best out of five rounds. Koshiro Sensei will call a clean hit since we are using bokken rather than real swords. I am my own worst enemy."

"Sounds like you've got this under control. You ready to go out there?"

"I don't think I really have a choice..." I sighed.

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A/N: Hello! If you like this story, I've written a few more featuring Crystal so you can check those out as well. Thanks for reading 3


	5. Chapter 5

She came for me as soon as the master called us to start. I heard quick feet fast approaching and she let out a fearsome yell before her wooden sword came down.

If it weren't for the yell, I would have had a tough time judging how close she was just by estimating the intensity of the sound of her steps when she was right in front of me based on how heavy her footsteps might be for a person of her size. It was a lot of information to take in and calculate but it's what I had been trained to do and it was starting to come instinctively.

Her attack was aggressive and confident. She hit harder than I would have expected from a girl like her and I imagined she must have had a lot of respect at the dojo for being so forward. Rather than dodging, parrying, or countering the initial attack, I took the full force of it head on. I held her there until she realized I wasn't going to budge and backed off.

"What's wrong, cold feet?" she gibed. "I get it, duels are tough. Not everyone is cut out for it. You know, maybe if you took that blindfold off, you'd have a better time with it."

What looked like my inability to do anything but block the attack was actually me taking in a wealth of information. From the single encounter, I learned more about her than some people would take an entire match to figure out. Through the connection of our bokken, I tested her strength, balance, stance and agility.

The strength of the first blow gave me a sense of her average attack power. I estimated how many of those hits I could take like that and determined that the match would be long over before she ever wore me out. My own blade was much too large for me to properly control but Zoro insisted that I train with it anyways. Compared to the a sword three quarters of my height and three times as wide as a katana, thus wooden bokken felt like I was waving around a stick. Considering that and Zoro's cannon-like strikes, I could play with Cassandra all day if I had to.

But it would take much less time than that. I was much more quick on my feet than her and if the strength was an issue, I could probably win just by my speed.

Clashing swords with her was so much different than training with Zoro and I was absolutely fascinated. I felt a hunger to touch blades with more and more people and discover all types of style and movement. I wonder what it would feel like to go up against myself?

I was already feeling bored with Cassandra because I felt she had nothing else to offer me. She stood there hurling insults and I decided to finish off this ordeal quickly and move on with my life.

"Come on, give me your best shot. I'll even give you a free hit because you look so scared," she sneered.

I charged at her and delivered a hard blow right to the stomach. She didn't even have time to get into an appropriate stance so it knocked her right over.

My point.

She stood up slowly with a blazing fire in her eyes. While she kept her composure, she was obviously pissed.

"What the hell was that?" she spit.

"Take your positions," Koshiro called.

As soon as we were allowed to start, I wasted no time in knocking her down again. Dodging her blow from the right, I passed by her. With a tight pivot, I turned around and delivered a square hit to the back. She lost her balance and fell forwards.

My point.

She screamed out in frustration and could picture her pompous expression was replaced with a nasty snarl. Her breathing was heavy and uncontrolled and I could tell she was losing her nerve.

"Get up. We still have three more rounds to go," I snapped at her.

"Shut up!" she yelled. "I'll make you regret this."

"You deserve everything coming for you," I warned.

I felt angry and violent. Her and girls like her had hurt me with their words, contempt, and influence. With this weapon in my hands, I finally had a way to fight back.

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A/N: Thanks for reading! Things are finally starting to heat up! If you like this story, I've written a few more featuring my OC so check those out on my profile :)


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